Family Roles and the Modern Grandparent

Home , Grandparent

ROLES Roles that grandparentsRoles that grandchildren’s playintheir lives valued elder(49%),andafriend(44%). source purveyoroffamilyroots, ofwisdom(52%),the heritage,andculture (49%),a acrossthemselves avarietyofroles, toproles the were choseforthemselves they asa grandchildren. wisdomandknowledgetotheir imparting Whenaskedto deﬁne grandparent’s respected role family. inthe Grandparents todaylargely role viewtheir as mosaicofgrandparentWhile the todayischanging,whathasn’t life changedisthe Grandparents retain ofrespected title the elder. on parenting. grandchildren andsociety, butmanyare valuesandviews ontotraditional holding still grandchildren.their Grandparents holdincreasingly progressive viewsabouttheir technology, andourworldhaveimpactedhowgrandparents relate toandengagewith grandparenting fundamentalsofthe the role remain same,changesinattitudes, the grandparents playanimportantrole sayingthey grandchildren’s intheir Although lives. Grandparents remain bedrock the eighty-onepercent with ofmodernfamilies of *Roots (i.e.,familyheritage,culture,history) ofWisdom AARP Research |Grandparenting © 2019 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED Source AARP |GRANDPARENTING Grandparent and theModern Family Roles 52 % ot*Valued Roots* 49 % elder 49 % redSoyelrTahrBabysitter Teacher Storyteller Friend 44 % 40 % 39 % / Daycare 38 % Mentor 35 % family legacy Conveyer of 33 % https://doi.org/10.26419/res.00289.018 Role asaGrandparent The Top Respected 52 and guidancetograndkids...” comfortable providing support “...grandparents are most today’s grandparents modern grandparent % different roles, joys, and challengesthat A newstudyonthe demonstrates the wisdom astheirrole. being asource of of grandparents view experience. Grandparents strive to provide a compass on morals and values (53%) but shy away from discussions on divisive issues. In general, grandparents are most comfortable providing support and guidance to grandkids about topics related to personal aspirations or Attitudes toward parenting expectations. Four in ten are comfortable talking about social etiquette and nutrition. Grandparents are less comfortable discussing sensitive issues related to parenting in the Agree Strongly Disagree Strongly

21st century such as drugs, social media, and politics. Agree Not Applicable

Level of comfort with discussion topics Disagree

Out of Conﬁdent Ambivalent comfort zone Parents today are too lax with their child(ren) School & Career plans Religion racism Social etiquette News & illegal drugs 77% and behavior Sports Current Events mental health 27% 50% 18% 2% 2% Values Career Drinking cannabis managing gender equality

overall health advice stress nutrition Internet safety & women’s rights media education and literacy issues finances social media organizations to join organizations household issues Spanking is an movies / tv with their and services politics dating bullying & peer pressure parent(s) Smoking sex / sexuality effective form of discipline 54% 11% 43% 29% 13% 5% Grandparents are embracing multiculturalism and different sexualities. As a whole, grandparents today have more multiracial grandchildren. In 2011, 16% said Parents today are too their grandchild was mixed race. In 2018, the number increased to 20%. For grandparents, over-protective of their child(ren) embracing multiracial grandchildren is important. Only 17% say having different racial/ethnicity identities than their grandchild would make it difficult to relate. Nearly all 49% grandparents (90%) say it is important that their multiracial grandchild knows about the 12% 37% 37% 10% 4% heritage they share, and seven in ten (70%) make an effort to help their grandchildren learn about the heritage they do not share. In general, parenting today is better than it was Grandparents are also navigating sexuality and gender norms. Today’s grandparents are accepting of grandchildren’s sexualities: 88% say if their grandchild came out to them as 25% LGBT, they would accept them, and 37% agree that gender is non-binary (boys can 5% 20% 46% 27% 3% identify as girls; girls can identify as boys). In addition, 51% of grandparents who identify Child discipline as LGBT say that their grandchildren are supportive about them being LGBT. today is better than it was

Grandparents cautiously navigate their role with their own children. 18% Outwardly, grandparents are accepting of their role as advisor and friend to their 5% 13% 44% 35% 2% grandchild and sit out many of the hard parenting issues. Inwardly, however, a majority of grandparents view their parenting style as superior to the parenting style of today’s parents. Just 25% agree that parenting today is better than it was in their generation, and 77% agree that parents today are too lax with their children.

Grandparents are actively seeking information about the latest issues their grandchildren 1Xu, Jiaquan, et al. Mortality in the United States, 2015. NCHS Data Brief No. 267. Washington, may be facing (20%), how to speak to their grandchildren about issues in their lives (20%), DC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and how to connect with their grandchildren (17%). They also seek information on how December 2016. to speak to their grandchild’s parents about issues concerning their grandchild (17%).

Opportunities Grandparents are contributing signiﬁcantly to the raising of their grandchildren. They are the moral compass and the conveyer of family heritage, culture, and history. Grandparents are living longer and starting to have great-grandchildren. By 2030, more than 70% of the U.S. 8-year-olds will have a living great-grandparent1. Helping grandparents find ways to share their knowledge and connect with their grandchildren will become more important.

For more information, contact Patty David, [email protected]. For media inquiries, contact [email protected].